By RAY BENTON
Leader sports editor
Cabot’s junior American Legion teams got the season started last weekend in Sheridan. The team known simply as the “junior team” went 3-0 in three day of play while the team called “The A Team” went 0-4.
The junior team opened play on Friday with a 7-1 victory over the tournament host, Sheridan, scoring four runs in the top of the first inning and never trailing. Logan Bell pitched four innings and got the win on the mound while Tanner Wilson closed out the final two innings.
Jackson Olivi was the game’s only player with multiple hits. He went 2 for 4 and scored two runs, while Wilson recorded three RBIs on one base hit.
The early game on Saturday against Searcy wasn’t as easy. Cabot had to come from behind after Searcy scored a run in the bottom of the third inning. The Centennial Bank squad didn’t score until the fifth, but posted seven runs in the last three innings for a 7-3 victory.
Olivi took the mound with two outs in the first inning, and stayed there until two outs in the bottom of fifth. Cabot too the lead with two runs in the top of the fifth, then added two more in the sixth, giving Olivi the win in relief. Hunter Price pitched the final two and a third for the save.
Graham Turner led Cabot offensively. He went 3 for 4 at the plate with one run scored and one RBI. Blayse Quarnstrom went 2 for 3, including a triple. He also scored two runs in drove one in. Austin Scritchfield went 2 for 4 with a double and scored a run.
In the second game on Saturday, Cabot hammered Arkadelphia 15-2 after again falling behind 1-0 in the first inning.
The Centennial Bank team only recorded nine hits, but showed patience at the plate in drawing 13 walks. Scritchfield led the offense in that win, going 3 for 4 with two runs scored. Price went 2 for 2 with two runs scored and an RBI.
He also got the win on the mound after pitching the second and third innings. Cabot took the lead for good with five runs in the second. A
fter a scoreless third, Cabot posted six runs in the fourth and four more in the fifth.
The A team opened with a 7-4 loss to Sheridan on Friday. On Saturday, it gave up big numbers in an 18-2 loss to Texarkana and a 21-8 loss to Jacksonville. Things got better on Monday, but it suffered another loss, this time 6-2 to Clarksville.
Brian Tillery played well throughout the tournament. He went 4 for 9 with four runs scored and three RBIs while stealing four bases. Austin Calhoun also had a good tournament. He went 3 for 6 and walked four times for a .700 on-base percentage.
The junior team resumes play today with its home opener at the Cabot Sports Complex. The Centennial Bank junior and senior teams will play a doubleheader against Little Rock starting at 6 p.m.
The A team plays tomorrow through Sunday in the Jacksonville Junior tournament. The first game of that tournament will be between The Cabot A team and Jacksonville at 5:30 p.m. Thursday.
